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Wendell M. Stanley - Biographical

Wendell Meredith Stanley was born
in Ridgeville, Indiana, on August 16th, 1904. He began his
advanced education at Earlham College and graduated Bachelor of Science in
1926 when he entered the University of Illinois, gaining a Master
of Science degree in 1927 and a Ph.D. in chemistry in 1929. He
continued at Illinois as a research associate and later as an
instructor before leaving, in the latter half of 1930, to do
research at Munich as a National Research Council Fellow. In
Munich he worked with Heinrich
Wieland until late 1931 when he returned to the United States
to take up a post as Assistant at the Rockefeller Institute. He
remained with the Institute until 1948, becoming an Associate
Member in 1937, and a Member in 1940. In 1948, he was appointed
Professor of Biochemistry and Director of the Virus Laboratory,
University of California; during 1948-1953 he was Chairman of the
Department of Biochemistry, and in 1958 he became Professor of
Virology and Chairman of the Department.

Stanley has been responsible for much important work on
lepracidal compounds, diphenyl stereochemistry and the chemistry
of the sterols. His researches on the virus which causes the
mosaic disease in tobacco plants led to the isolation of a
nucleoprotein which displayed tobacco mosaic virus activity. The
virus appeared to act like an inanimate chemical but it presented
evidence of being a living and growing organism. His more recent
work on the preparation and investigation of influenza and
similar viruses has led to his development of the centrifuge-type
influenza vaccine. He is a recognized world authority on viruses
and, as such, he has written over 150 papers on the topic and
contributed chapters to several books.

Professor Stanley was awarded the American Association for the
Advancement of Science Prize in 1937, and his many other honours
and awards include the Rosenburger Medal (University of
Chicago), Alder Prize (Harvard), and Scott Award (City of
Philadelphia), 1938; Gold Medal of the American Institute of New
York, 1941; Copernican Citation, 1943; Nichols Medal (American
Chemical Society), 1946; Gibbs Medal (American Chemical Society),
1947; Franklin Medal and Presidential Certificate of Merit, 1948;
the Modern Medicine Award, 1958; and the American Cancer
Society's Medal for Distinguished Service in Cancer Control,
1963. He has been awarded honorary Doctor of Science degrees by
many universities and colleges, including Earlham, Harvard,
Yale (1938),
Princeton
(1947) and Illinois (1959); honorary Doctor of Law degrees of the
Universities of California (1946) and Indiana (1951), the Jewish Theological
Seminary of America (1953) and Mills College (1960);
and Doctor, honoris causa, University of Paris
(1947).

He has served on the Councils of many academic, medical and other
learned societies, and as consultant and advisor to the United
States government and the World Health Organization. He continues
as Director-at-large, American Cancer Society and as a Member of
the Board of Scientific Counsellors of the National Cancer
Institute. He is a member of many scientific societies.

Wendell M. Stanley married Marian Staples on June 15th, 1929.
They have one son, Wendell M. Junior, and three daughters,
Marjorie Jean, Dorothy Claire, and Janet Elizabeth.

This autobiography/biography was written
at the time of the award and first
published in the book series Les
Prix Nobel.
It was later edited and republished in Nobel Lectures. To cite this document, always state the source as shown above.